Devotion #30

CENTRAL TRUTH: We experience joy as we use our time, talent and treasure to accomplish Christ’s will for New Covenant Bible Church.

BIBLE PASSAGE: Acts 13:48-52

Doing the right thing is seldom easy. In fact, there can be strong opposition for doing the right thing.

Our greatest calling—our mandate from Christ—is to make disciples of all people groups (Matthew 28:19-20). So it should not surprise us if we are opposed or even persecuted for obeying Christ’s command.

That is what happens in today’s passage. As you read it, put yourself in the disciples’ sandals. You are busy sharing the good news. Those who hear it begin to rejoice and cross that line of faith. But then religious leaders stir up persecution, and you are thrown out of the region. How would you feel? Discouraged? Angry? Confused? Frustrated? I know I would be. Yet the disciples were filled with joy and the Holy Spirit.

Joy is not based on our circumstances or how people respond. It is based on a certainty that we are in the center of God’s will and plan. Joy comes in the obedience, not in people’s responses.

As you conclude your 30-Day Journey, take time to consider what you have learned and what you should do. As you invest yourself and your resources to do God’s will, you will experience great joy even when things get difficult on your journey.

If you have not done so yet, please open your Journey Guide to the corresponding devotion in the Reading Journal section. Journal your thoughts in response to the questions found there, spend some time in prayer, and take a couple of minutes to review this week's Memory Verse.

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Today's Author

James Wartian

My name is James Wartian. I was introduced to my wife Melody by a mutual friend, who was also her pastor, and we have been married almost six years. Last April, we had our first child, Andrew, and he has been an absolute joy (even though we do not get much sleep).

I have been on staff at New Covenant as the Mature Adult/Missions Pastor for almost four years. You might be interested to know that the very first sermon I ever preached was at Camp Hiawatha when I was a senior in high school. It had to be no longer than 3.5 minutes, and I stayed under the time limit!

Comments

[Tye Male]

Wow! I couldn't believe it when I turned the page in my Journey Guide and the journey was completed, well, officially. This journey has been an incredible experience and has opened my eyes in ways I could have never dreamed of 30+ days ago.

Today I will be working at Panera which helps provide for my family, but it also serves to give me opportunities to develop relationships with prechristians and maybe someday I'll be able to share a word about Christ with them.

Once again, I've enjoyed this journey and look forward to doing it again perhaps sometime in the future.

[Richard Kramer]

When is it wise to step back from witnessing? I have friends and family members (like so many of us) who simply turn off when they hear anything about Jesus as the Savior of their soul. When they do object and reject, I often want to feel sad and guilty for me not being able to reach them with this glorious message.

This passage teaches me to give my very best like Paul and Barnabas, but when my effort becomes non-productive I am allowed to move on to where the hearts are open without me feeling defeated. More than that, I can maintain the deep joy in my heart and the presence of the Holy Spirit in my life as I look with anticipation to the new task of reaching out to someone else.
Thank you everyone for this intense 30-day study. I have been challenged and I have grown spiritually - even at my age.

[Erin Bird]

Your comments, Richard, remind me of the parable of the sower found in Matthew 13. In the story, Jesus makes it very clear we are the farmers who sow the seed. In light of our topic of stewardship, it only makes sense to be good stewards of the gospel. If some "soil" is hard, let's not keep throwing the seed there. We can throw the seed to those people once they are softer - which only God can do. Let's focus on throwing the seed to those who are ready to hear (like the Gentiles were in today's passage).

So even though this 30-Day challenge is over, the challenge to keep spreading the gospel is not. May we continue to be good stewards of this gospel Christ has entrusted to us, sharing with those ready to hear, and find the joy that awaits as we see lives changed - even when we face persecution, exclusion, or just the roughness of life itself.

[SilviaRAMOS]

Make your life time more easy take the home loans and all you need.